Need Help Finding a Stone

[TakingthePlunge]

Its my GFs birthday in a month and shes due for something sparkly. Her favorite color is green but Ive never gotten her a green stone. Ive narrowed stone choice to either a Demantoid or Tsavorite. I would prefer a demantoid. Heres my wishlilst:

In a perfect world it would be a russian demantoid with horsetails only under the loupe. This way it looks clean but still has the horsetails as shell get a kick out of them (she has a horse). I would also like to find a stone thats not oval or round (maybe a pear, cushion or emerald).

As for the setting Im thinking a ring but nothing so fancy that she cant wear everyday if she wants. She's really good with her jewelry and has actually worn a tanzanite for several years daily with it still looking great.

Budget: Id like to keep it at 1000 or less for the stone and setting.

After typing all that out I can see why I havent found anything yet. Im being very picky. But hey its all about he thrill of the hunt right guys (and ladies).

 

[chrono]

So far, almost all the Russian demantoids I’ve seen are cut as rounds because that’s just the way the rough material is formed and due to the high cost, rough will be cut to preserve as much weight as possible, not to mention rounds are superb at showing off the high dispersion. GemLine aka Litnon constantly carries a good selection of Russian demantoids. Both demantoids and tsavorites tend to be rather expensive, so even your ring is going to be a plain metal solitaire, your stone will definitely be under 6 mm. Just wanted you to be aware of it.

 

[T L]

Well, it's hard to find demantoids larger than a carat. What size stone are you wanting? Does she like dark green, or more minty or light yellowish greens? Does it have to be a very clean tsavorite (I assume she doesn't mind horsetail inclusions in demantoid). You can save $$ on a larger tsavorite if it has some inclusions and isn't the preferred ideal medium dark green. Otherwise, they tend to get over $1K in sizes above 1.5 carats, and at some vendors, a 1.5 clean stone will be at least $1K. Is she picky about cutting? Does it have to be precision cut? What shapes does she like?

 

[Arkteia]

I am not a specialist; just can speak from my own experience.
I have a 2.3+ ct. unheated demantoid and a 3.6 ct. tsavorite. At this point in time, I am more inclined to invest in a tsavorite. The prices have been going up, but you can buy a spectacular stone at a fraction of demantoid's price.
Russian demantoids have incredible dispersion and are as sparkly as diamonds, but with a Mohr of 6.5, they would still be more fit for a pendant, even if your mother is super-accurate.
It would seem to me that lighter, more yellowish demantoids look more brilliant, and greener, more beautiful ones, are less dispersive. Moreover, greener ones are often heated and heat should be a factor reducing the cost. (Many companies sell heated stones at the same price as unheated, but in fact there should be a difference in price). Tsavorites have a greener, better color, and with proper cut, they can look more stunning than demantoids.
It is more difficult to obtain Russian demantoids of decent sizes, but the prices are already so high that they seem to have reached a certain plateau (at least so it seems to me). I bought an alexandrite; an expensive and rare stone, but the price has not changed over the last few years, it has reached a certain plateau. With tsavorites, it is still growing, so if I were buying a green garnet now, I'd opt for a tsavorite.
I bought my demantoid through a very good jeweler with a decent overhead and my tsavorite from Lisa E., a precision cutter. I'd say that her price was very attractive.

 

[TakingthePlunge]

It does seem that finding a good none round is going to be problematic. a round shape may just be my first concession in the search. I emailed Litnon on what looks to be a great looking round:

http://www.litnon.com/index.php?page=viewgem&id=7534

I am wondering about there description claiming VVS with horsetails visable only under strong magnification. Its a very cookie cutter discription for several demantoids on their site. On the main picture I see what appears to be a horsetail at 7 oclock.

As far as color goes I dont think she has ever seen a demantoid before nor knows what it is. Im going to wing it as its a birthday present so I figure I can get a little out there. Personally I think the yellower greens like the demantoid above show a little more multicolor flash in pictures. An additional plus is they seem to run slightly lower in price.

Pricing seems all over the map on these stones. I want the horsetails so I have to buy Russian which sadly means more bucks. I read somewhere where mining for demantoids in russia is only like 2-3 months of the year due to conditions. Anyone know when Demantoid season starts?

I dont need a huge stone. Around a carat to 1.5 would do well. I want her to wear it often.

 

[TakingthePlunge]

Perhaps I will put a little more effort towards finding a good tsav. They do seem to be a bit easier to find a good one. I just need to find one with a good price.

 

[Arkteia]

I don't know when it starts although I can tell you it is certainly not winter because winter temperature in Yekaterinburg which is close to the Ural Mountains is often below -30 Celcius (got knows how much it makes in Fahrenheit; probably the same; basically, very cold). So definitely not winter. But it doesn't matter because "the best season" is during Tucson Show and Pala has lots of them all year round. Perhaps your jeweler can help you look at Pala's inventory? I heard that Michael E. has been helpful, too.

P.S. You do not want to go to the Urals and buy it from the miners there! My maternal uncle lives there and knows almost everyone in the city and yet I do not buy it on site.

 

[T L]

It does seem that finding a good none round is going to be problematic. a round shape may just be my first concession in the search. I emailed Litnon on what looks to be a great looking round:

http://www.litnon.com/index.php?page=viewgem&id=7534

I am wondering about there description claiming VVS with horsetails visable only under strong magnification. Its a very cookie cutter discription for several demantoids on their site. On the main picture I see what appears to be a horsetail at 7 oclock.

As far as color goes I dont think she has ever seen a demantoid before nor knows what it is. Im going to wing it as its a birthday present so I figure I can get a little out there. Personally I think the yellower greens like the demantoid above show a little more multicolor flash in pictures. An additional plus is they seem to run slightly lower in price.

Pricing seems all over the map on these stones. I want the horsetails so I have to buy Russian which sadly means more bucks. I read somewhere where mining for demantoids in russia is only like 2-3 months of the year due to conditions. Anyone know when Demantoid season starts?

I dont need a huge stone. Around a carat to 1.5 would do well. I want her to wear it often.

Forget getting a nice green 1 to 1.5 carat Russian demantoid with horsetails for under $1K, let alone a whole ring.

 

[movie zombie]

Forget getting a nice green 1 to 1.5 carat Russian demantoid with horsetails for under $1K, let alone a whole ring.

that was my reaction as well. from what i've read not much is coming out from the mines any more.....but there is a lot of synthetic out there as well...also russian.

mz

 

[chrono]

Like mentioned earlier, getting a non-round Russian demantoid is going to be an almost futile search but the Namibian ones can be found in cushion shapes. Yes, the yellower ones are priced less than the chrome greens, plus they tend to show more dispersion as well. As of now, the quality and quantity being mined are of much lower quality than it used to be. Even a 1 ct demantoid, yellowish green and eye clean will take you well over your $1K budget. Actually, even a 1 ct tsavorite of fine quality will be over your $1K budget but at least you can get a non-round and non-oval shape and with a concession here and there, you might be able to eke by within your budget.

 

[MarquiseGirl]

Check out thegemtrader.com, Brad has a cushion cut Russian demantoid. The listing says it has the horsetail inclusion, and it is within your budget.